In as little as ten years, the very concept of money might have been forever changed by crypto-currency and blockchain technology – and then again, it might not. The same might be true of all the trends that now dominate our new vocabulary – from the metaverse to NFT’s, Web3 to Bitcoin. What’s real, and what’s not? Are we about to unleash a wave of innovation that parallels and exceeds the impact of the arrival of the Internet economy? Or are we simply being held hostage to the accelerated hype machine of Silicon Valley and venture capitalists, eager to cash in on an accelerated world of faster FOMO – “fear of missing out?”
Making sense of today’s reality is a challenge, and that’s where Futurist Jim Carroll comes in. As they say, timing is everything, particularly when it comes to the issue of getting involved in any particular trend. In the era of acceleration, it becomes even more critical. You’d better make sure you are ready with any trend of importance and relevance because the future might happen before you know it. And yet understanding the future today is all the more challenging as the gap between the promise and reality of any new trend becomes even more challenging when faced with opinions that are all over the map. As Kevin Kelly, the founder of Wired noted, “the future happens slowly, and then, all at once.” Any particular trend can bubble along for a time, seemingly inconsequential and of little impact. And then, all of a sudden, it can ‘go supernova’, explode in importance and significance – and suddenly, be everywhere!
In this keynote, futurist and technology expert Jim Carroll peels away the layers of the new vocabulary and today’s ‘hot trends’, outlining the challenges and opportunities that come with a fast-moving world – and provides a real overview of the potential impact and hype behind today’s trends.
